LADY TOYMAKERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19216, 4 January 1926, Page 3

LADY TOYMAKERS.

As a rule, so it is said, women specialise in toys which a factory cannot produce. There is always a demand for stuffed playthings, but the craze of the moment is for brightly-painted objects in papier mache. The woman toy-maker often surprises friends by asking them for all their blue paper sugar bags. This paper is moistened and placed in a mould with a special paste. When the toy emerges in its rough form from the mould it is dried, painted and varnished. The women who take up this work have also been assisted by the returning vogue for dolls' furniture, attributable to the widespread interest taken in the Queen's doll's house. The soft doll which was introduced two or three years ago from Italy is another popular toy which can be handmade. The breakable doll is losing favour at the present time. This fashion has given a new lease of life to the rag doll, but the modern toy is artistic, and in no way resembles • the hideous rag doll which was so dear to many a child of the preceding generation. The idea of making toys for a living has recently suggested itself to some who possess neat fingers and inventive brains, and the woman toymaker, with her artistic and attractive wares, is now visited by many people a.t Christmas time. Original and hand-made objects so often imply high prices that it is gratifying to find that the cost of most hand-made toys is very moderate. One lady who i:> finding a field for her artistic gifts in toy designing has dis-covered,-that children love colour and toys that do something. The slightest incident may provide her with a suggestion for an original design. A conversation with a friend led to tho creation of a mother duck and family, and a roundabout, complete with its riders, that goes to music was evolved in a similar way. A doll that can stand in any position has yet to be produced by the toy factories, but one has been shown in London by a lady who for years has beem attempting to find a doll that would not fall down in a doll's house, and the delightful little toys which she now produces can be set in almost as many postures as the human body. While the individual toy-maker has established herself in many towns, a great deal is being done co-operatively in rural districts, and in a considerable number of villages women are now making toys under the direction of some gifted lady. The' Home Arts and Industries' Exhibition included a display of beautiful toys made by the women of Exbury, Hampshire. The work is in charge of Mrs. Lionel de Rothscibild, and one of the new dolls designed for Christmas is an Oriental prince with a jewel in his turban. Toymaking is also taught by several societies which care for disabled women and girls, and the House of Help, of which Princess Beatrice is patroness, sells suites of dolls' furniture, arm chairs and settees, made up from ficraps of silk and other materials supplied by subscribers.